The Thompson Wash Rock Art District, known by the

Bureau of Land Management The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands, U.S. federal lands. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the BLM oversees more than of land, or one ...

as the Sego Canyon Rock Art Interpretive Site, is a

rock art In archaeology, rock arts are human-made markings placed on natural surfaces, typically vertical stone surfaces. A high proportion of surviving historic and prehistoric rock art is found in caves or partly enclosed rock shelters; this type al ...

site in

Grand County, Utah Grand County is a county on the east central edge of the U.S. state of Utah, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 9,669. Its county seat and largest city is Moab. Grand County is home to one of the nine stat ...

, north of the town of

Thompson Springs Thompson Springs, also officially known for a time as just Thompson, is a small census-designated place in central Grand County, Utah, United States. The population was 39 at the 2010 census. The town is just north of the east–west highway ro ...

. It contains art from three different cultures: the Fremont, the

Ute Ute or UTE may refer to: * Ute people, a Native American people of the Great Basin * Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation, Utah * Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah * Southern Ute Indian Tribe of the Southern ...

, and the Barrier Canyon Style. It has been listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

since August 1, 1980.

History

The Barrier Canyon Style petroglyphs are the oldest, dating to 2000 BC, while the most recent is the Ute, ranging from the 14th to 17th centuries.

Panels

The

's art shows people with shields, horses, and buffalo. It has been vandalized. The Fremont panel describes large humans, a hunter, and

bighorn sheep The bighorn sheep (''Ovis canadensis'') is a species of Ovis, sheep native to North America. It is named for its large Horn (anatomy), horns. A pair of horns may weigh up to ; the sheep typically weigh up to . Recent genetic testing indicates th ...

. Geometric designs also appear, with this panel being similar to ones found in Ninemile Canyon. Finally, the Barrier Style glyphs show small and large humanoid shapes, with the large ones having an appearance similar to a mummy. They do not have arms or legs and possess large eyes and skull-like heads, similar to the ones found in Horseshoe Canyon.

References

{{authority control Geography of Utah Hieroglyphs National Register of Historic Places in Grand County, Utah